The young boy lived up the road. Whenever I saw him he seemed to droop, never looking at you, his brow a field of ridges and furrows and his shoulders sagged. He never smiled and the most response from him was a grunt.

When I heard he’d hung himself the line from The Loved One echoed round my head. giving me visions of red protruding eyeballs and a black protruding tongue. I fixated on the ability of anyone to lie in the bedroom where he had hung. Most of all I wondered if I could have made more of an effort.

Depression is the leading cause of disability worldwide and in Australia each year around 1 million people suffer with depression and 2 million with anxiety. The number of deaths by suicide in young Australians is the highest it has been in ten years and is the biggest killer of our youth – higher than car accidents. Beyond Blue and other organisations are well equipped to give assistance to those concerned for loved ones and for those who need help.

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About Irene Waters 19 Writer Memoirist

I began my working career as a reluctant potato peeler whilst waiting to commence my training as a student nurse. On completion I worked mainly in intensive care/coronary care; finishing my hospital career as clinical nurse educator in intensive care. A life changing period as a resort owner/manager on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu was followed by recovery time as a farmer at Bucca Wauka. Having discovered I was no farmer and vowing never again to own an animal bigger than myself I took on the Barrington General Store. Here we also ran a five star restaurant. Working the shop of a day 7am - 6pm followed by the restaurant until late was surprisingly more stressful than Tanna. On the sale we decided to retire and renovate our house with the help of a builder friend. Now believing we knew everything about building we set to constructing our own house. Just finished a coal mine decided to set up in our backyard. Definitely time to retire we moved to Queensland. I had been writing a manuscript for some time. In the desire to complete this I enrolled in a post grad certificate in creative Industries which I completed 2013. I followed this by doing a Master of Arts by research graduating in 2017. Now I live to write and write to live.

That was sad. Even I dia has seen increase in such cases. The big problem is, many people don’t even understand here that someone dealing with depression needs assistance. A pat on the back might not be sufficient.

That is so true. for many years here you were seen as being weak if you became depressed so people learnt to keep it quiet. In reality almost 50% of people will experience depression in their lives and it is a huge problem. I hope your country tackles it and I hope so does mine.

Thank you. In our society we isolate ourselves from our neighbours and don’t want to interfere. It has dreadful ramifications not only for those that are depressed but also for new mothers that could be stuggling and the elderly.

Yes I agree Tracey. It is an increasing problem and unless we have the conversation and work out strategies to help I fear it will continue to rise as we isolate ourselves more and more from our neighbours.

You’ve tackled an important topic with your powerful story. By making it personal, making it real, you open your readers’ eyes to the issue. Well done.
Of course, because of the constraints of 100 words you’ve made the victim very obviously ill. Here, in the comments, without any word count, it’s probably worth mentioning that many people who suffer from depression and/or anxiety don’t show severe symptoms – but they’re still seriously at risk. It’s really important that we are sensitive to the state of mind of our family and friends.
The good news is that professional help can improve matters greatly. Both depression and anxiety can be effectively treated with appropriate therapy.

Thank you for adding further information Penny. You are of course right that often no-one knows. Unfortunately in our society we become isolated in our boxes and it is not just depressed that suffer but also new mothers that aren’t coping and the elderly to name just a few. Perhaps we should make more of an effort to be inclusive of those around us whether we know they need help or not.

Irene, this is one your best. You drew that boy so clearly, and my heart wanted to reach out to him. Depression is something I deal with every day in my counseling office. It’s surely a terrible enemy.

Someone once wrote that a suicide kills two people. I think it is at least two. The living torture of wondering was there anything that could have been done to prevent the tragedy. Signs and signals are absent in so many vulnerable people.

This is heartbreaking Irene. And all the more so because of the simple prose you used, the thoughts surrounding the boy’s death. It’s so frightening, this phenomenon, especially in young men who seem unable to discuss their problems. Very well written

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Irene Waters

I began my working career as a reluctant potato peeler whilst waiting to commence my training as a student nurse. On completion I worked mainly in intensive care/coronary care; finishing my hospital career as clinical nurse educator in intensive care. A life changing period as a resort owner/manager on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu was followed by recovery time as a farmer at Bucca Wauka. Having discovered I was no farmer and vowing never again to own an animal bigger than myself I took on the Barrington General Store. Here we also ran a five star restaurant. Working the shop of a day 7am - 6pm followed by the restaurant until late was surprisingly more stressful than Tanna. On the sale we decided to retire and renovate our house with the help of a builder friend. Now believing we knew everything about building we set to constructing our own house. Just finished a coal mine decided to set up in our backyard. Definitely time to retire we moved to Queensland. I had been writing a manuscript for some time. In the desire to complete this I enrolled in a post grad certificate in creative Industries which I completed 2013. I followed this by doing a Master of Arts by research graduating in 2017. Now I live to write and write to live.